Nice Day for a White Wedding
by Darling Pretty
Summary: "This could just be the tequila talking, but… I think there's a woman wearing a wedding dress in the kitchen." Alex sits down next to a woman in a wedding dress and his life changes, if not for the better then certainly for the snarkier. Addex.
1. Waiting for Godot, Guffman, & to Exhale

**Hey, don't mind me... Just starting something else instead of working on what I should be working on. But I just really, really love writing this and it's going to be short (it originally started as a oneshot), so I figured there's no harm in posting the first part. Anyways, I hope you enjoy.**

**Many, many thanks to Kate811 for suggesting the title and LGCoffeeAddict for... well, I'm not really sure WHAT she was good for on this story, but thanks anyways! ;)**

* * *

Alex Karev always runs to work. Always. The exercise makes him feel good about himself and the time alone allows him to clear his head. Plus, it means he doesn't have to spend that time with the soap opera he calls his friends.

Today, Alex Karev makes a decision. Meredith has been having a string of meaningless flings every night and Izzie and George have been acting like class A morons, as usual. Izzie's hot, but when put in close proximity of George O'Malley she becomes cheery and… fluffy, for lack of a better term. They both are just… fluffy. So instead of going straight home, he heads into the park, something he usually reserves for particularly bad days or when he knows that Meredith is finally getting some after a particularly long dry spell. He's jogging when out of the corner of his eye he sees a flash of red and blinding white. So he slows down and comes to a stop when he realizes just what he's seeing—a redhead sitting in a wedding dress, appearing to just be pondering life. He's not really sure why he stops and sits down next to her, but it probably has something to do with the fact that she fills out that wedding dress very, _very _well and well, he's always had a thing for redheads.

"Waiting for Godot?" he asks, sitting down next to her. She raises an eyebrow. "Guffman?" He pushes forward. "Waiting to exhale?"

"Can I… help you?" the redhead finally speaks slowly.

"Nope," he shrugs and becomes silent.

The redhead chuckles a little. "I'm supposed to be getting married right now," she announces suddenly.

"Really? Because I was going to ask if somebody Korean died."

She studies him. "I don't like you."

"I don't like you either."

"You don't know me!"

"So? You don't know _me_, but you don't like me."

"Hey, you're the one who sat down next to me and started talking to me about _Waiting for Godot_!"

"And you're the one sitting in a park in a wedding dress. You're not exactly the picture of sanity."

"Hey! I walked out on my wedding. My _wedding_."

"Why?"

She squints a little. "Somehow I just don't see myself marrying a guy who slept with my maid of honor."

"Fair," he agrees.

"I mean, _God_!" she exclaims, showing no signs of having heard him. "Just how clichéd can you get? And I _hate _clichés!"

"She could have been your sister," he suggests.

She stares at him in shock. "I really don't like you," she decides. Then she sighs. "The worst part is I lived with him. And now I can't go back. I can't go back and I have no cash or credit cards. What am I supposed to do?"

"I'd offer you a place to say, but you don't like me, remember?"

"Do you make a habit of inviting strange women in wedding dresses home with you?" she asks, perfectly arching an eyebrow.

"Only the hot ones," he says honestly.

Again with the staring thing. "Yeah, I _really _don't like you… I'm Addison."

"Alex."

"I'm not sure I can stand you, but I need a place to stay."

"You're welcome to come home with me. One of my roommates is probably having sex, but you can still stay."

"I don't like you," Addison repeats. "But I have nowhere else to go. So lead the way."

0ooo0

Meredith comes downstairs, trying to blink away the blurriness in her eyes and find some coffee. And then she tries to blink away what she sees in the kitchen. "Alex?" she asks, poking her head into the living room where he's pulling out the sofa bed.

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"This could just be the tequila talking, but… I think there's a woman wearing a wedding dress in the kitchen."

"Oh. Yeah, no, she's there. Don't worry, you're not going crazier."

"Um, I feel like this might be the obvious question, but _why _is there a woman wearing a wedding dress in the kitchen?"

"She's staying here," he answers, gesturing at the couch.

"Um, why?"

"I haven't really figured that out yet."

"And _why _is she wearing a wedding dress?"

"I would assume it has something to do with a wedding."

"Hi," Izzie greets as she flounces into the room. "Alex, have something you'd care to share with the group?"

"Oh my God, Alex, did you get _married_?" Meredith shrieks as she thinks she pieces the puzzle together. "What the hell? What happened to being all dark and twisty? I thought we were being scary and broken together! Are you going to be all bright and shiny and fixed now? I'm not okay with that!"

"Is _that _why there's some strange chick in the kitchen wearing a wedding dress?" Izzie screeches.

"Um, guys?" George says timidly as he pads in to join the party. "Is anybody else aware that there's a super hot lady in the kitchen?"

"Apparently that's Alex's new wife," Izzie replies, "and I have no idea where Alex picked her up. But I wouldn't put someone unsavory past him."

"Oh my God, did you marry a stripper?" Meredith gasps.

"How does that even make _sense_?" Alex laughs, kind of enjoying the absurdity. "Why would I marry a stripper?"

"Is this like a tax fraud thing?" George asks. "Or… or… or a green card thing? I won't lie for you, Alex. Not to the federal government, not to anybody! I won't!"

"_Relax_, Bambi," Alex says with an eye roll.

There's a quiet but authoritative cough from the door. "Hi," the subject of their conversation greets them. "I… um, I feel like I should explain. My name's Addison. I was… Um, I'm supposed to be married right now. But I found out my fiancé slept with my maid of honor and, long story short, I need a place to stay for just a night or two while I figure out what I'm going to do. Your friend found me in the park and offered me a roof. Honestly, I'd go anywhere else, but I live with my fiancé and I can't face him yet and I don't have any cash… or even friends out here. I just moved to Seattle. My stuff isn't even fully unpacked yet. I'm supposed to start my job in a week—after, um, after the honeymoon." She wipes her palms nervously on her dress. "But if it's an inconvenience-"

"It's fine," Meredith interrupts, trying to shake the strange sensation that she recognizes this woman.

"Really? I mean, I can find somewhere else."

"Voting is closed," Izzie determines firmly. "You'll stay here. I'm a sucker for a sob story."

Addison looks to Alex for approval. "Okay, well, thank you."

"We look about the same size," estimates Izzie. "You can borrow some of my clothes for now."

"Thank you so much," Addison says graciously.

"So did you say what you do?" Izzie asks as they walk out.

The last thing they hear before Izzie and Addison leave earshot is, "I'm a surgeon. Neonatal."

Suddenly things click into place for Meredith. "Oh my God!" she exclaims. "Do you know who that is?"

"Who? Who?" George asks.

"I think that's Addison Montgomery! Oh my God, Addison freaking Montgomery is in my house and I'm half drunk! Blargh!"

Alex smirks. "Addison Montgomery?" he parrots, mostly just to exacerbate things. He knows who Addison Montgomery is—you can't be a surgeon and get away with not having heard of her—but he just wants to see Meredith freak out.

"_Addison Montgomery_! She's like a surgical superstar! No… God! The woman is surgical divinity! And she's in my house!"

Alex looks at her warily. "Are you going to all _Misery _on her? Because I'm going to get her out of here if you have plans for amputation."

"No!" Meredith glares. "It's just that one of my professors in med school taught her. We used to watch tapes of her surgeries in class because he was so proud. Actually," she reconsiders, "now that I think about it, _he _might have gone a little _Misery _on her, given the chance… Anyways, that's not the point. The point is that you brought Addison freaking Montgomery into my house and she's here and I look like crap!"

"I can ask her to run out on her wedding at a more convenient time, if you want," he offers.

"No, no, it's fine," Meredith says before hearing the sarcasm. "Don't be mean! Addison Montgomery is in my house!"

Alex grins. "Sounds like you have a girl crush on my stripper wife."

"Hey, I'm totally straight!" Meredith insists. "…And I would do her in a heartbeat," she admits.

"Can I watch?" Alex smirks.

"Ass!" she giggles, smacking him in the arm. "You're gross. And no."

0ooo0

When the couch is set up and Addison is out of her monstrous dress she sits in Meredith Grey's living room in the dark, staring at the ceiling. She's surprised when someone pads into the room and again when the pull-out sags under the weight of said someone sitting down and she slides towards the divot. "Um, excuse you?" she asks, her voice muffled since her face is pressed into a thigh. The sofa isn't exactly new and the mattress sags a little in the middle, which doesn't help with the face/thigh situation.

"Sorry." She recognizes the voice as Alex (is it weird that she can already recognize his voice?). He shifts a little and she sits up.

"What are you doing here?"

"I live here."

"I mean on my… sofa-bed."

"Not really your sofa-bed either. It's technically Meredith's."

"You know, I have yet to find a quality about you I like."

"Really? Because I can think of a couple of your… qualities I like."

"Seriously? You're hitting on me right now? And that's the best you can come up with?"

"You know what?" he says, getting up. "I just thought you wouldn't want to be alone on what was supposed to be alone on your wedding night, but you seem just fine and sarcastic, so I'll go sleep now."

"No, Alex, please!" Addison panics before getting herself under control. "Um, stay. Please stay. I just don't… I don't want to be alone tonight. I don't want to have sex with you but… I don't want to be alone."

He sits back down on the sofa, this time on the edge. "Okay," he agrees. "I'm here."

"Thanks."

They sit in quiet for what seems like forever. "So what about your fiancé?" he asks to break the silence.

"Ex-fiancé," she corrects.

"What about him?"

She's quiet. But it's not angry; he can tell. She's just thinking. "He's charming. He's got this smile… He just makes you feel like when he looks at you, you're the only woman he sees. Except then he stops looking at you and makes the waitress feel like she's the only woman he sees. I should have seen this coming, I guess. I don't think Angie was the first. I just didn't want to see it."

"That sucks."

"Thank you for that succinct summary."

"Other than your annoying inability to switch off your sarcasm, he's an idiot."

"That was almost nice," she concedes.

"Yeah, well, I just don't see how he would need to cheat on you. You're hot."

"Aaaand you can leave now," she says.

"Well, I figure either you suck in the sack or he's an idiot."

"Hey!" Addison snaps. She glares at him. "I'll have you know I'm great in bed. Not that it's any of your business at all. And not that you'll ever find that out."

"I was gonna say the last one seemed more likely."

She studies him intensely. "I don't understand you… Usually I understand people. Not you. I'm going to figure it out."

"I look forward to you figuring me out," he smirks.

"Everything is sexual with you, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Well, at least you admit it."

"So your best friend's name is Angie?"

"_Was_, Alex. _Was _my best friend. Adultery tends to put a damper on things."

"Whatever. What's she like?"

Addison takes a deep breath. "I… I don't want to talk about it. Let's talk about something else."

"Fine."

More silence. "So what's your favorite movie?" Alex finally asks.

"That's lame," she replies. "And it's _Breakfast at Tiffany's_. You?"

He sighs. "Are you going to sleep at all tonight?"

"Probably not. Answer the damn question."

He scratches his head and gets comfortable. It's going to be a long night.

* * *

**I'm going to write the next chapter very, very soon. I'm thinking this is only going to be 2-4 chapters, and my goal is to be done in a week or two. In the meantime, I would LOVE to hear first impressions!**

**-Juli-**


	2. Sexless Sofa Bed

**Okay, this is starting to get ridiculous. I meant for this to be a oneshot. Then I meant it to be just two chapters. Now it's going to be three at the very least. Ah well, I'm not going to argue. This is too much fun to write and I need to de-stress from all my midterms. So reap the benefits of my stress.**

**I, as always, own nothing. But I am about to make some kettle corn. So that's good.**

* * *

When Addison wakes up, she freaks out for just one second as she tries to remember why she's in this strange living room, why she's not on her honeymoon, and why she can't move her legs. Then she remembers that she's not married, she's staying with random strangers, and the reason she can't move her legs is that she slept draped over the sofa arm, her feet tucked up beneath her and said random stranger's head is resting on her thigh. And his hand is resting near his face on her thigh too, a little high on her thigh for her to be comfortable.

She studies his sleeping face and swallows. Minus the cocky smirk and overly sexual sense of humor, he's really, _really _good looking. (Okay, so who's she kidding? He's hot _with _the cocky smirk and overly sexual sense of humor.) Good looking enough that she couldn't mind if his hand were to creep a little higher…

_STOP IT! _she roars in her mind. She is _supposed_ to be on her honeymoon right now and she's already fantasizing about another man! Albeit a very, very hot man who offered to let her stay with him for no apparent reason. Well, other than the fact that he thinks she's hot. Which makes her think that if she were to wake him up in the way she has in mind, he wouldn't stop her.

_No!_ Not going down that road. She was supposed to be married today and maybe he has a girlfriend—maybe even one of the women he lives with. But if that's the case, why would he be downstairs with her right now? Why did he stay when she asked him to? Why had he kept her entertained and preoccupied all night until she fell asleep? And why did he stay on this uncomfortable couch, using her thigh as a pillow? She needs him to stop touching her. It's messing with her head. Really messing with her head. She really needs him to stop touching her.

She kicks him gently to make him move. He doesn't. So clearly her next move is to kick him harder.

"Ow!" he exclaims, returning to consciousness. "What the hell?"

"You're on my legs," she replies primly.

"Do you _always _kick guys after sleeping with them? Because that's kind of a real turn off," he grumbles as he sits up, rubbing his chest where her foot had made impact.

She rolls her eyes. "No. And we didn't sleep together. So I have every right to kick you."

"Okay, first off, now you're saying anybody you don't have sex with, you can kick? And secondly, we did _technically _sleep together."

"You know what?" she says. "I'd like to restate that. I have every right to kick you because you're you."

"That doesn't make sense either," he retorts as they climb off the couch.

"Have you heard yourself?" she asks. "Because, clearly, you deserve a swift kick to the-" Her sentence is cut off by a shriek as her leg collapses under her weight. He tries to catch her, but that just means they both go tumbling to the floor. "Ow!" she moans over the sudden buzzing sensation of pins and needles filling her legs. "Oh my God, my legs are _so _asleep! Oh God, that hurts! OW!"

"You nearly killed me!" Alex laughs.

She takes a break from moaning melodramatically. "I didn't mean to kill you. Just maim. Or seriously injure. And- OW!"

"You okay?" he asks.

"I feel like ten million needles are being shoved into my muscles. How do you think I am?"

"No need to be surly."

"This is all your fault!" she exclaims, rubbing her calves in an attempt to stop the tingling.

"_How_?"

"_You're _the one who was all "You don't want to be alone on your wedding night" and _you're _the one who kept me up until all hours with lame ass jokes and questions _and _you're the one who used my thigh as a pillow!"

"For the record, you have a very comfortable thigh."

She glares at him. And then she grimaces because she tries to put weight on her leg. "I literally cannot move right now," she says.

"_Literally_?" he mimics her. "I'm pretty sure you're not a statue."

"Oh, be quiet. I'm your guest and I'm in pain!"

"Hey, we just met yesterday. I don't have any obligation to be nice to you."

"I really, really hate you," she states.

"I really, really hate you too," he agrees amiably. Her glare meets his steady gaze and after about three seconds she starts to giggle. And that quickly morphs into a quite literal interpretation of rolling on the floor laughing.

"Oh my God, my leg hurts so badly!" she complains through her laughs.

He gets up. "Not my fault."

She looks up at him with a puppy dog pout. "Help me up? Please?"

"Why?"

"Because I can't put any weight on my leg!"

"And _whose_ fault is that?" he asks patiently.

She groans. "Mine, okay? Just help me up, please?"

She expects him to offer her a hand, maybe support her as she stands. She's not prepared for him to kneel down and scoop her up. "Let's get breakfast," he says.

"Um, okay," she agrees, automatically wrapping her arms around his neck. And then she lets him carry her to the kitchen and set her down in a chair at the table without asking the one question on her mind. But once she's sitting down, all bets are off. "So what's with the carrying me thing?"

He shrugs. "I _did _fall asleep on your thigh."

"So you're admitting it's your fault?" she smiles.

"What do you want for breakfast?" he asks.

"Smooth transition."

"Am I going to have to count down to time out for you to give me an answer?"

"What are you offering?"

"Whatever we have is fair game."

"Well, what do you have?"

"Has anybody ever told you that you ask too many questions?"

"I feel like that was a perfectly fair question!"

"Ignore him," Izzie advises as she glides into the kitchen. "He just likes to make life difficult for people. It's what he lives for."

"Was that supposed to hurt in some way?" Alex asks flippantly. "I'm making waffles and omelets. You want some?"

Izzie turns to Addison, cradling a mug of freshly poured coffee. "Except he does make an _excellent _breakfast," she concedes. She turns back to Alex. "Gimme."

"Rude," he retorts.

"Did you just decide what I'm going to eat?" Addison wonders. "What if I don't like omelets? What if I'm allergic to eggs?"

"Are you?" he asks before her rant can get too fully developed.

"Well, no, but-"

"Do you not like omelets?"

"No, I love them, but-"

"Then we don't have a problem and you can quit being a pain in the ass." He smiles to soften the harsh words.

"It's the principle of the thing," Addison grumbles with a roll of her eyes.

The argument over omelets could probably go on forever, but as Alex opens his mouth to retort, Meredith shuffles into the kitchen, groaning something unintelligible that might be "coffee." Addison quirks an eyebrow as the woman crosses the kitchen, wondering if she's hungover. Alex catches her eye and shakes his head subtly. Meredith is clearly not a morning person, but she's also clearly not hungover—if she were, she would be lying in bed right now, waiting for one of her roommates to bring her the coffee instead of making the arduous journey to the kitchen herself.

Izzie quickly pours a second mug and wraps Meredith's groping hands around it with a "There you go," to indicate that she's about to release it.

With the coffee returning her brain to operation, Meredith surveys the kitchen through new eyes and nearly gags when she sees the redheaded woman sitting at the kitchen table. "Oh, right," she says faintly. "You're here."

Addison leans over to Izzie and whispers, "Should I be offended?"

"I have no idea," Izzie admits. "Usually the coffee makes her semi-normal."

"Meredith," Alex says loudly to snap the woman out of her daze. "You want some breakfast?"

"Oh, um, yeah. Thank you," Meredith stammers, sitting down slowly at the table. She folds her hands on the table and stares at them, glancing up at Addison every once in awhile.

After two or three minutes of this, Addison gets up and crosses to Alex. "Um, why is your friend staring at me? I feel like she's about to go all Annie Wilkes and lock me up in the basement."

"Oh," he says casually, "you're kind of her idol. Don't worry about it. There's too much crap in the basement to shove you down there too."

"Comforting," she murmurs.

"I thought so. Here, take this," he says, shoving a plate full of food into her hands. "Eat."

Addison studies the portions he's given her. "There are starving children in Africa, you know."

"Yeah. Your point?"

"I'm not a linebacker! I don't eat four thousand calories a day!"

"Oh, no, trust me," Izzie interrupts, "you're going to want that."

"Huh?"

Instead of answering, Alex picks up her fork and cuts off a piece of omelet. "Open." The fact that it's not a question surprises her and she does as he says. He places the fork in her mouth, gently pushes her chin up with his other hand to make her close, and pulls the fork out slowly. Addison chews slowly, a little surprised that someone she's known for less than twenty-four hours just fed her.

"Okay," she concedes. "That's pretty amazing."

"I know," he replies smugly.

"You're so wonderfully humble. It's so nice to know that there's still some modesty left in the world."

"Sit down and eat your food," he laughs. "And if it's too much, you don't have to eat it all. We can ship it off to the starving kids in Africa."

She glares and sits down, deciding that she's going to finish every last bite. "So," she says, starting in on the waffles. "You all know what I do, but I don't anything about you."

"We're surgeons," Izzie answers.

"All of you?"

"We work together. It makes living together convenient, so we do," Izzie shrugs.

"What hospital do you work at?"

"Seattle Grace," Alex butts in before Izzie can monopolize even more of the conversation.

Addison's fork freezes halfway to her mouth. "You're kidding."

"No?" Alex replies, unsure of why she seems so shocked.

"Wait," Meredith says suddenly. "Are _you _the new attending?"

Alex and Izzie's heads snap towards her. "New attending. What?" they ask in unison.

"Did you not hear about that? I thought it was pretty common knowledge."

"Um, _no_," Izzie insists.

"Oh, well, I heard it from Cristina-"

"Of course it was Cristina," Izzie mumbles. "When is it ever _not _Cristina? I need to start talking to her more."

"Anyways, apparently they're bring in a new attending for neonatal—clearly Dr. Montgomery."

"No more Dr. Meyer?" Izzie says. "Score!"

"You _can _call me Addison, you know," Addison informs Meredith at the same time. "Just not in the hospital, apparently."

Meredith looks down and mumbles something unintelligible. Addison sighs.

"So you're… our boss," Izzie puzzles.

"I guess. Not until next week though. I was supposed…" she trails off, biting her lip. "I wasn't supposed to be here this week."

"You could come in today, see if the Chief will let you start early," Izzie suggests.

"Yeah, but…"

"But what?" Alex asks.

"Um, my ex works there," Addison says quietly. "What if he's there?"

"Who were you engaged to?" Izzie questions enthusiastically.

"Izzie, shut up," Alex orders. "Damn, Addison, you finished that whole thing."

Addison looks down and sees that she has indeed managed to eat everything on her plate. "That's kind of disgusting," she comments.

"Nah," Alex replies. "Chicks who actually eat are sexy."

Addison quirks an eyebrow. "You think I'm sexy?"

"Pretty sure we've established that," Alex replies with a smirk. Addison grins back and the kitchen becomes uncomfortably quiet.

"Okay, we get it," Izzie speaks up. "You're both very pretty people and you want each other very badly. _I_, however, want to hear more about the ex."

"Izzie!" Meredith exclaims.

"Well, I _do_! We work with him! I want to know!"

"It's fine," Addison says. The best way to get over it is to start desensitizing herself, right? "Um, he's a plastic surgeon. Mark Sloan."

The kitchen falls silent. "What?" Addison asks. "_What_?"

"It's just-" Alex starts, only to be overshadowed by Izzie's, "Alex is kind of Sloan's star student."

"Oh."

"Yeah," Alex says.

Another silence. "Well, this is awkward," Meredith proclaims.

0ooo0

Addison doesn't go into the hospital that day. The risk of running into Mark is too great. Only when Alex gets home and reports that he appears to have gone on their honeymoon trip does she even think about going in the next day.

"You want to give me a ride somewhere?" she asks him that night.

"Oh, I'll give you a ride," he says lasciviously, mostly just out of habit. Then he winces; even he recognizes the awfulness of the line.

She snorts derisively. "We need to work on your pick up lines or you're never going to get any."

"Hey! I get plenty," he sulks defensively.

"Uh huh." The skepticism is _not _well hidden. "That completely explains why you're living with two beautiful women and yet you spent the night in my sexless sofa bed."

"Izzie and I used to have a thing," he replies. "It didn't work out but we're still friends. And Meredith… No way I'm going down that rabbit hole."

She gives him a very pointed grin. He groans. "Okay, you lose the right to tell me I have a dirty mind when you turn an Alice in Wonderland reference porny."

Another sly grin. She leans in close enough that he can feel her breath tickling his ear and far enough that he'd have a very nice view should he happen to look down. "You don't think I can be porny? I assure you, Dr. Karev, I can be very, _very _porny if I set my mind to it." She hovers there for a second, looking him through what can only be described as bedroom eyes. Then she leans back and laughs merrily. "So can I get that _car _ride or not?"

"Uh, sure," he says, quickly looking away from her, trying to counteract the effect of having her in such a close proximity and saying very, very, um, _exciting_ things. "Where?"

She fidgets uncomfortably. "If I'm going to the hospital, I need clothes. My clothes. And I need my purse and phone and you said Mark is gone and I just want to get my stuff out of his apartment."

"When he's not there? Isn't that kind of cowardly?"

"Don't start with me, Karev," she snaps. They've established a playful, bantering relationship, but she is _so _not in the mood to be teased about this.

"Let me get my keys," he says. She's surprised; his voice had softened, almost as if he realized just how much she needed him to just capitulate this once and had actually listened.

* * *

**How much longer do you think I should carry this on? Love to hear thoughts!**

_**Up Next: Alex helps Addison gather her things and there may be some jealousy and a kiss or, at the very least, some very close talking.**_

**-Juli-**


	3. What They Say About Guys With Big Hands

**Okay, I'll admit I lied. There is no kiss in this chapter. I did mean for there to be, but then I got this marvelous, wonderful idea (which you are privy to if you follow me on Twitter... or if you read my profile) and the kiss had to be postponed. This is really just a short scene. Nothing really. Filler. But I already had it written and it makes sense for it to be in the story. Also, I snuck a nice Rent reference and an NCIS quote into it and I didn't want those to go to waste! So enjoy this very fluffy, very fluffy little bit of nothing!**

**I own nothing.

* * *

**

Alex watches as Addison fidgets with the key to the apartment she was supposed to share with Mark. He can sense the hesitation as she goes to insert it into the lock, so he just grabs it from her and opens the door himself. "Rip the band-aid off," he shrugs. And then he pushes her inside.

It's funny really, Addison thinks as she looks around. This was supposed to be her home. She's been living in this apartment for almost a month, but it still doesn't feel like home. She had gotten almost all of her things unpacked (a severe inconvenience now) and she had gotten used to the bed, but it wasn't _home_. She didn't look forward to going there, not really. It was Mark's place. She had always just assumed that once she got settled into her job and being a wife, they would look for a place for _them_. Then again, they had never actually talked about it and clearly Mark wasn't all that considerate of what she wants.

She shakes off her thoughts and begins gathering her things. Alex looks uncomfortable, unsure of what he can do. "So you and Mark," Addison comments mildly, throwing things back into boxes.

He jumps. "Huh?"

"Meredith said you're his star pupil."

"Nah," he denies sheepishly.

"Please," she scoffs. "Don't be self-effacing. It doesn't look good on you."

"Fine, sure, I guess," he shrugs. "I was just the best kiss-ass, that's all."

"Just because he's a jerk to me doesn't mean you can't like him, you know."

"I don't like him, Addison. I like what he can teach me, but I thought he was a horrible person long before you got here and proved me right."

She looks up from the suitcase she's packing. Impulsively, she reaches out and squeezes his hand, smiling to thank him. "Cold hands," she comments.

"Yours too."

"Big," she observes. She glances down. "Big feet too. You know what they say about guys with big hands and big feet, right?" It's an open ended question and she quirks an eyebrow, letting him know what they say about guys with big hands and big feet isn't PG rated.

"N-no," he stammers before he gets control of his voice. "What?"

Her hand is still holding his. She grins. "They're clowns." And then she laughs merrily and returns to packing. _Addison:2, Alex:0_

If she had paid more attention, she would have seen Alex's face change as he recognizes that score.

"Here," he offers, "let me help." He steps toward the closet and brushes his hand against her hip innocently. It totally could have been an accident. It wasn't and they both know it. He smirks when he hears the hitch in her breath. It's nice to know it's not just him.

They managed to get most of her things packed without incident. Though they continue to banter, the touching stops. Alex likes to think it's just because of where they are, that if they weren't in the apartment she was supposed to share with her ex-fiancé she would be okay with him touching her, maybe even stealing a kiss.

"Thanks for doing this," she says with a smile. He's just managed to take the last box down to the car. She grabs her purse.

"No problem," he replies. "Really."

"Well, it means a lot to me. I mean, you barely know me."

"I do though," he contradicts her. "Or I'm starting to."

She smiles and he grins back. He looks good, she thinks. Genuine happiness looks good on him. "Well, it means a lot to me anyways. So thanks."

"No problem. Now, come on. Let's get out of here before we're contaminated or something."

She laughs and gives him a point in her mental tally. Which kind of actually worries her. But she pushes that away. So he can be funny and sweet and happens to be ridiculously attractive. That doesn't mean anything except that good guys exist. It doesn't have to mean anything beyond that. Right?

* * *

**Hope you liked it, pure sugar though it may be!**

_**Next Chapter: I have two words for you...**_**Princess. Bride.**

**-Juli-**


	4. I'm Not A Witch, I'm Your Wife

**This story… What to say about this story? This story is quickly becoming my pop culture story. I'm planning THEMES for chapters; that's how bad it's gotten… It's like my pet. My favorite child… No, no, I love all my stories equally. Of course I do. Anything else would be simply **_**inconceivable!**_

**Speaking of "inconceivable" (how's THAT for a transition?), this chapter does have a theme! It's a complete homage/ loving rip-off of one of the best movies of all time (in my opinion), **_**The Princess Bride**_**. Seeing the movie is not necessary, the plot will still make complete sense, but I strongly urge you see this movie. It's got something for everybody and is incredibly entertaining. Besides, most of the jokes in this chapter are completely cribbed from the movie and they won't be entertaining if you don't know the movie.**

**Herein you shall find storybook love, a rhyme involving the word peanut, R.O.U.S. es (I don't think they exist), and possibly even talk of mawwiage and to blave.**

**And, yes, to answer your question, it IS a kissing chapter.**

**I own nothing I write about or reference, and chances are anything you laugh at in this chapter isn't from my mind either.**

* * *

"You okay?" Alex asks when they get home.

"Yeah," Addison answers, still looking a little shaken up.

"Convincing," he laughs.

She glares. "Oh, thank you. Your vote of confidence is overwhelming."

"I'm just saying," he says. "You look kind of sick or something."

"Yeah, well, moving out of my fiancé's house isn't exactly cause for rejoicing."

He's silent for a moment. Then he sits down on the couch. "Okay, so what are we doing tonight?"

She raises an eyebrow. "We?"

He shrugs. "Figure you probably don't want to be alone tonight either."

"I'm tired," she capitulates without protesting that she's fine and doesn't need him. "Let's watch a movie."

"Fine, what do you want to watch?"

"You're letting me pick?" She sounds surprised.

"You sound surprised."

"I almost never got to pick the movie." She says it offhandedly, like it hadn't ever really bothered her, but for some reason, the statement makes something near in his chest hurt.

"Well, you can now."

"I'm warning you now, it's gonna be a chick flick."

He grits his teeth. "Fine."

They scan the options until Addison's eyes widen as she sees exactly what she wants to watch. "The Princess Bride," she decides. "That's what we're watching."

Alex laughs. "_That's _your idea of a chick flick?"

She frowns. "What's wrong with The Princess Bride?"

"Nothing," he assures her. "It's just… I hate to break it to you, but that's not a chick flick."

"It's a chick flick!" she insists. "The guy comes back from the dead for her. Twice! That's so romantic. Such a chick flick."

He laughs. "There's _pirates_, Addison. Pirates and sword fighting and attempted murder. Not a chick flick."

"You're impossible. It's a chick flick."

He grins. "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

She glares. "Are we going to watch it or not? Is it not chick flick-y enough for you? Because I can pick something else. A movie where they just sit around and talk about their feelings the whole time. I'm sure you'd love that."

"Hey, guys!" Izzie exclaims, flouncing into the room. "What are you up to tonight?"

"We're about to watch The Princess Bride," Alex says. He hides a grimace when Addison asks, "Would you like to join us?"

"Oh, I _love _this movie! It's _so _romantic!"

"See?" Addison exclaims.

"Not a chick flick," he grumbles.

"Death cannot stop true love," Izzie quotes. "It can only delay it a little while… God, can I have a Westley? Please?"

"Meredith!" Addison exclaims, looking past Izzie's head. The mousy woman jumps. She still will barely look Addison in the eye. "We're about to watch The Princess Bride. Would you like to join us?"

"Um, uh, sure. Um, thanks."

They get situated on the couch. "Where's George?" Addison asks.

"He's got a girlfriend, apparently," Izzie answers. "We don't know her."

"Huh… Well, are we going to start this movie or not?"

"As you wish," Alex says with a roll of his eyes.

They all settle in and turn out the lights. About ten minutes into the movie Addison comments, "Shouldn't we have popcorn or something?"

Alex gets up. "As you wish," he smirks.

"Huh," Izzie comments. "That's weird."

"What?" Addison asks.

"Alex isn't _nice_," Izzie says. "Not really. He doesn't do things to just be nice."

"I can hear you, you know!" Alex yells from the kitchen. "Try whispering next time!"

He comes back in, this time with a freshly popped bowl of popcorn. When he sits back down, they start playing the movie again, sitting in companionable silence, sometimes broken by fits of laughter. Every once in awhile, Addison will reach for the popcorn only to find Alex's hand already there and their hands will brush as they both reach for the salty goodness. And as the movie progresses, Addison will subtly check to see if he's laughing at the right parts.

_This is true love – you think this happens every day?_ Westley says on the screen.

Addison turns her head slightly to gauge his reaction and realizes that he's done the exact same thing. They lock eyes and smile. Somehow it seems like the world recedes just a little bit until they finally return their eyes to the movie.

0ooo0

The next morning, Addison heads into work with Alex, hoping to convince Richard to let her start early. Izzie and Meredith both have a day off, so they watch the pair pour themselves coffee. "Bye, guys!" Izzie calls as they walk out the front door. "Have fun storming the hospital!"

Addison and Alex both roll their eyes but chuckle under their breaths. "_Such _a good movie," Addison says.

"It really is," he agrees. They climb into Meredith's borrowed car and start driving. "So," he starts after an acceptably awkward silence. "Your first day."

"Yeah. I just hope it goes okay."

"It's gonna be just fine."

"I think so. Richard's a friend of mine."

He glances over and sees the corners of her mouth struggling to stay down. And then he gets what she's playing at. "Stop that rhyming and I mean it!"

"Anybody want a peanut?"

"That was completely stupid," he informs her.

"But it was _funny_. Admit it. You want to laugh right now. You so do. You're secretly laughing on the inside because it was just _that_ funny."

He laughs—not because it's funny, but because she has such a perfect deadpan delivery that she can't possibly be serious. She looks rather pleased with herself and they spend the rest of the car ride quoting the movie.

0ooo0

The day is going mostly okay for Addison. Nothing catastrophic befalls her so she deems it a success, though the tedious formalities of having a new staff and being a new surgeon are starting to wear on her nerves. She misses needing no introduction. In fact, the only things that make that portion of the day bearable at all are the brief instances in which she sees Alex. They're usually only minute long conversations but he'll ask how she's doing and sound like he really wants to know. Then they'll throw a quote from The Princess Bride at each other and continue on their separate ways.

She's walking down the hallway when someone whispers into her ear, "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die," and when she turns around, Alex is walking away like nothing happened. She laughs and wonders why he's trying so very hard to make her smile.

Later she gets paged to meet an ambulance in the pit. She smiles when she sees Alex already there. "What's going on?" she asks.

An intern details the specifics of the case to her. Addison immediately decides on surgery as the best course of action and sends him to ready an OR. "You scrubbing in, Karev?"

The look he sends her very clearly telegraphs a no shit, Sherlock sentiment.

She's surprised by how well they work together in the OR. They've never operated together yet he seems to be able to read her mind.

The stress of the surgery makes her snap at a nurse unnecessarily and the OR falls silent. She apologizes and things go back to normal.

"Witch," Alex accuses her, smiling behind his mask.

She laughs because she gets his quote. "I'm not a witch, I'm your wife!" she finishes without thinking.

The OR becomes deathly silent and she realizes she said that far louder than she intended. She and Alex both look around the room at the stunned staff. "Really?" Addison asks loudly. "Nobody's seen The Princess Bride? _Really_?" People shake their heads no. "Oh, come _on_, people! I'm quoting a classic here!"

"And for the record," Alex speaks up, "we're not married."

"Thank God for small miracles," Addison grins. He glares at her as the OR returns to normal.

0ooo0

"Addison!" It's early the next morning and Addison doesn't have nearly enough caffeine in her system to make it okay that she's back at the hospital.

She turns around and curses under her breath. "Derek. Hi."

"How are you doing?" he asks with that sickeningly sympathetic tone she has come to hate.

"I'm fine. You?"

"Good. Surprised you're here though."

"What else am I going to do while I was supposed to be on my honeymoon?"

"I don't know… _Not_ working?"

Addison chuckles. "Do you know me at _all_? Why are _you _here? I would have thought you and Mark would be partying it up on our cancelled honeymoon."

Derek studies the floor. "I, um, I had to work."

Addison knows Derek fairly well. Well enough that she knows when he's lying. She stops smiling as she realizes the reason for his sudden evasiveness. "He took someone else, didn't he?"

He finds something on the ceiling beyond her head incredibly fascinating. "Derek!" she snaps when he won't answer.

"I, uh, I don't know for sure, but, uh…"

"Spit it out Derek. Now."

"Angie. I think he took Angie."

She blinks. _Why _had she ever considered getting married to this man? Better question, why had she counted that woman among her best friends?"

"You okay?" Derek asks.

"Give me a second," she says shakily.

He gathers her into a hug. She squirms a little uncomfortably but gives in quickly. "He's an ass," Derek comforts her. "But he _does _love you."

She pulls back and rewards him with a skeptical share. "Did you really just say that? Seriously?"

"Look, I know it's crazy, but he does, the best way he knows how."

"Are you trying to be funny? Because this isn't funny."

"Addison, I've known Mark since we were two years old and I have seen him cry _twice_. Once when we were seven and he fell out of a tree and practically shattered his ankle. The second was when you walked out. I just think… I think you should talk to him."

"_He took another woman on our honeymoon!_"

"I know it doesn't make sense," Derek sighs. "But he loves you. More than almost anybody. He does. But it scares him and he doesn't know how to deal with it."

"If he _loved_ me, Derek, he'd be able to keep it in his pants. Don't pretend he's some sort of martyr!"

"Addi- ur, Dr. Montgomery, are you okay?"

Addison whirls around to find Alex looking concerned. "No, Alex. No, I'm not fine."

"What's going on?"

"Derek here seems to think I should give Mark another chance. Even though he took another woman on our honeymoon."

"Dude, _seriously_?"

"Apparently his love _scares _him so therefore he cheats," Addison mocks with a roll of her eyes.

Alex starts laughing as Derek frowns. Slowly, Addison starts to join in. "Dude, why?" Alex asks.

"Why what?" Derek sulks.

"Just _why_?"

"I think what Karev is _trying _to say is neither of us can understand why you'd even suggest something so ridiculous."

"What about love, Addison? You were going to marry him, right? Isn't that true love?"

Addison and Alex look at each other in disbelief. "Did he just say _true love_?" Addison asks.

"I didn't hear it."

"Really?"

"Nah, I heard to blave."

Addison grins. "Which we all know means to bluff. That doesn't seem like a very substantial reason at all."

Derek shakes his head. "You're ridiculous." Then he walks away.

The brave face Addison had put on melts. "You okay?" Alex asks.

"I'll be fine," she replies.

"Here, come on." He leads her to an on call room and locks the door behind him. "Could I get some honesty now?"

A few tears trickle down her face. "I didn't think it would be this bad but… but he went without me and he took someone else."

"Yeah, well clearly the dude's an idiot."

"I just… I know I did the right thing and it's better that I found out now. But it still hurts. And I have to see him and…"

"It'll be okay, Addison. I promise."

She looks up and almost laughs. "You _promise_? How can you possibly promise me that?"

"I just can. So shut up."

She rolls her eyes. "You're insane."

"I'm right is what I am."

She shakes her head no, but a smile threatens to break through. He decides to make it happen. "So what about the R.O.U.S. es?" he asks, nudging her shoulder with his.

An eyebrow quirk. "Seriously?"

"Yep."

"Rodents of Unusual Size? I don't think they exist."

"You sure about that? I think you might have been engaged to one."

She lets out a sharp bark of laughter that transforms into genuine giggles. He grins proudly before joining in on her infectious laugh. It takes more than a little willpower to not cover her mouth with his own.

0ooo0

As the days wear on, the situation at the Grey residence begins to become almost unbearable. Meredith still blushes and stammers when Addison looks her way, George is never home, and Izzie keeps looking at Addison and Alex with a creepy, knowing smile. As for Addison and Alex, well, they're somehow managing to toe the line between innocent flirting and too far. But sometimes it's almost too much. A look will be too steamy, a moment too intimate. And in those moments, it's almost impossible to keep their hands off each other. But they manage. Until…

Mark comes back. And, of course, Addison has to run into him right off the bat. "Look, can we talk?" he asks.

"I don't think there's anything to talk about," she says, keeping her eyes forward.

"Addison, it was an awful mistake. And I'm sorry. You have no idea how sorry I am."

"Sorry enough to take my supposed best friend on _our _honeymoon! Mark, honestly, I'm so mad, I can't see straight."

Mark's frown deepens. It's the look that says he's about to say something beyond hurtful. "At least _I _have someone. What have you ended up with?"

Addison's mouth drops open. She doesn't even know where to begin to start to formulate a retort. Luckily she doesn't have to.

"Dr. Montgomery!"

She and Mark both turn and see Alex jogging to catch up with them. "What is it, Dr. Ka-" She doesn't get a chance to finish because one arm is wrapping around her waist and the other hand is cradling her face and his lips are on hers. And she kisses him back for all she's worth and more.

The Princess Bride claims that since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses rated the most passionate, the most pure and that Westley and Buttercup's left them all behind.

This one though? This one blew all six of them out of the water.

* * *

**I would love to hear thoughts! I kind of love this chapter.**

**-Juli-**


	5. The Destruction of Prince Charming

**This is short and kind of a cop-out since I've had it written for months and only just decided that I should just stop here. I'm really sorry that I haven't posted anything Grey's Anatomy related lately. My muse seems to have completely disappeared. (Fun Fact: That sentence may have originally said "My muse seems to have completely disappeared completely.") I'm trying really, really hard to recover it, but it's being really difficult.**

**There are several references to Disney movies (pretty much my one true love), so I hope you catch them. If you want.**

**I own nothing. That much has not changed.**

* * *

Addison is rudely awakened from that fuzzy mid-kiss place when the man she's kissing is torn away from her.

"What the _hell_ do you think you're doing, Karev?" Mark bellows, but not before Alex takes a fist to the jaw.

Alex looks about ready to attack. Addison may have only been at the hospital for a week but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that a resident punching an attending in the middle of the hallway would be frowned upon, so she grabs his arm and starts to physically drag him away. She turns back to Mark to glare at him. "Little tip," she snaps, "insulting me then attacking the man I'm kissing? Not the way to get on my good side. Grow up, Mark."

At first she had assumed the building rage was directed solely at Mark. But as she pulls Alex away, she realizes the full extent of her anger and drags him into an empty supply closet. "What the _hell _was that?" she nearly screams before remembering that the walls and doors of this hospital are notoriously thin.

He shrugs, defensively nursing his jaw.

"In what world is just waltzing up to me and kissing me okay? _Nowhere_! _Nowhere _is that okay! What the hell were you thinking?" He opens his mouth to answer but she steamrolls right over him. "No, you know what? I don't want to know. I don't want to hear your voice because I'm pretty sure _I'll _punch you if I do. You can't _do _things like that, Alex! I mean, what did that even mean? _Why_? Well? Why aren't you answering?"

"Oh, I've got permission now? You're not going to punch me?"

"Just answer." The frantic confusion and anger is settling into stone cold fury, though she's not sure who she's the angriest at—Mark for being idiotic and hurting her, Alex for being idiotic and kissing her, or herself for being idiotic and enjoying that kiss so damn much.

"You needed help. I improvised."

'You nearly improvised your way to a broken jaw."

"It didn't hurt that badly," he grumbles. "Dude punches like a girl."

"Yeah, that explains why you're still rubbing your jaw. What were you _thinking_?"

"I wasn't," he admits.

"That's pretty clear," Addison scoffs.

"You just looked like you wanted out."

"So you kissed me? I'm not some damsel in distress, I can handle myself. I don't need you to come kiss me to save me from some horrible fate. I'm not waiting around thinking someday and my prince will come and you sure as hell aren't my prince. You don't need to _rescue _me."

His frown deepens. "Fine. Whatever."

"Alex-"

"No, _Dr. Montgomery_," he growls, her professional name a slap to the face. "I got it. You don't need me. You don't need anybody. Got it. I'll leave you alone from now on."

He storms out before she can respond.

0ooo0

The Grey household is suddenly transformed into a battleground, almost complete with flying objects. Any time Addison and Alex run into each other, it results in a few harsh, loud words and slammed doors. No one's told Izzie or Meredith what happened at the hospital so this is rather confusing.

"What are you doing?" Izzie frowns later that day when she finds Addison packing up her things.

"Packing," Addison responds. "I've taken up enough of your time. I can get a hotel room or something."

"No, don't!" Izzie exclaims. "We like having you here. It's not an issue."

Addison shakes her head quietly and starts to exit the room. Except she runs directly into Alex. She glares at him for a second before storming up the stairs and slamming the door to Izzie's room. They can hear a quiet click follow the slam. Izzie rewards Alex with his second glare of the minute. "What the hell did you do?" she snaps.

"Nothing!"

"Nothing, my ass. Alex, she wants to move out!"

"What?"

"Yeah, so that little nothing you did? Made her start packing up her things. Good job."

Alex frowns, trying to process this information. He knew she was mad at him, but _this _mad? He had thought they were getting… well, close to something, whatever it was.

"What did you do, Alex?"

"Nothing!" he insists.

"Did you hit her?"

"_No_!" he roars. Then he loses his fire which is probably what Izzie was hoping for with this shock tactic. "I… we… I kissed her," he admits, slumping.

"_What_?" Izzie shrieks.

"What is going _on _in here?" Meredith cries, coming into the room to check out the noise.

"Alex kissed Addison," Izzie explains before Alex can open his mouth. "And now she's leaving!" Because apparently we can't be _adults_ about the whole thing!"

"I, uh, I might have… it might have been in front of Sloan," Alex mumbles.

"_What_?"

"Alex, that's your career!" Meredith exclaims.

"I don't care. I just… I need to… I have to make things okay with Addison."

Izzie flings her arm towards the stairs. "Be our guest."

The trek to Izzie's room feels like a death sentence. And as he walks, he gets mad. She's not the one who should be upset—he's the one who was flat-out rejected! So by the time he gets to the room, he's just completely pissed and bangs on the door instead of knocking politely.

"What?" Addison snaps through the door.

"I want to talk to you," Alex yells back.

"Go to hell!"

"Seriously, Addison? Out of all the insults you could have gone with, you choose go to hell? You're better than that!"

She pulls the door open just far enough to let him see her scowl. "You are a sad, strange little man. Better?" Then she slams the door in his face.

"Apologize," Izzie directs. Alex whips around and finds Meredith and Izzie both standing behind him.

"Will you guys just let me do this?"

"Oh yeah, because you're doing just _oh _so well on your own," Izzie laughs.

Alex glares.

"Tell her you're sorry," Meredith says quietly. "You screwed up."

"But-"

"Just do it."

Alex rolls his eyes, but nonetheless says, "Addison, I'm sorry."

"How nice for you," comes the reply.

Alex looks at Izzie and Meredith hopelessly. "Why don't you ask her out?" Izzie suggests.

"What?"

"Alex, we have spent the past week listening to you flirt and joke and do everything _but _go there. You don't get opportunities like this every day. Ask her to get dinner. Or something. Anything. Really!"

"Addison, look, I'm _really _sorry. But… I, uh… Get dinner with me."

"Um, no."

"Say please," Meredith suggests.

"Please?" Alex asks, his distaste for the word evident.

"No."

Alex looks helplessly at Meredith and Izzie. "Well, what do you want me to do? Dress in drag and do the hula?"

"That would be awesome," Izzie says. "But try again."

"Addison-"

The door swings open. "You know what the problem with men is? They think no means yes and get lost means take me, I'm yours! I_ said_ no!"

"Fine, whatever," Alex sulks, his face settling into what seems to be a permanent scowl.

Addison looks at the three people all watching her. She sighs. "You're paying."

"Okay."

"I'm picking where we go."

"Okay."

"You'll do my laundry for a week?"

"Don't push it."

* * *

**Well, I hope you enjoyed. Sorry about the delay. I can't really promise it won't happen again.**

**-Juli-**


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